State-owned Ferry Unused For Three Years

Officials are still trying to determine what to do with a new high speed passenger ferry intended to carry school children across Currituck Sound from the Outer Banks.

The Corolla has been docked for three years, and it may sit even longer because of plans to build a bridge over the sound by 2013.

Department of Transportation spokesman Ernie Seneca says the state hasn't decided what to do with the 277-thousand dollar boat.

The ferry was supposed to cross the sound at 30 miles an hour, cutting an hour off road trips. Tests show the vessel can go 17 miles an hour and it's hard to handle in the winds common on coastal waters.

Officials say the number of children expected to use the ferry has dropped from about two dozen to fewer than six.

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